LAUSD board meets to discuss superintendent following federal searches

Within hours of FBI searches of the home and office of Los Angeles Unified Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, the district’s board of education scheduled a special meeting Thursday to discuss his employment.

That’s the only takeaway from a public agenda posted Wednesday afternoon. The public will have an opportunity to address the board at the start of the meeting, but the discussion about the superintendent will be held in a closed session.

“The LAUSD Board of Education understands that today’s news has raised questions across our school communities,” the board said in a statement Wednesday. “The Board’s priority remains ensuring that our students, families, and employees experience a safe and welcoming learning environment. Teaching and learning continue across our schools.”

The reason for the searches is unknown, although they have been the subject of widespread speculation. A Department of Justice spokesperson said the agency had a court-authorized warrant but declined to provide additional details. The FBI told LAist’s media partner CBS LA that the underlying affidavit remained under court-ordered seal.

A spokesperson for the FBI in Miami confirmed Wednesday’s L.A. searches are linked to a search of a South Florida home the same day. That property, identified by local media outlets, belongs to a woman associated with the company LAUSD contracted with to create a short-lived AI tool.

The district published a statement Wednesday saying it was “cooperating with the investigation, and we do not have further information at this time.” The district declined to make a representative available to LAist’s public affairs program AirTalk and reiterated the same statement.

What we know about AllHere, the maker of LAUSD's AI tool

Property records show the South Florida property searched Wednesday belongs to Debra Kerr. According to bankruptcy filings, Kerr was a contractor for ed-tech company AllHere.

Federal authorities have not connected AllHere to Wednesday’s investigation.

Los Angeles Unified approved a $6.2 million contract with AllHere in June 2023 to develop a tool that would create an “individual acceleration plan,” using district data and featuring an artificial intelligence chatbot.

LAUSD debuted “Ed” the following March as a "personal assistant" to students that would point them toward mental health resources and nudge students who were falling behind.

Within three months of its debut, the company behind Ed, AllHere, furloughed the bulk of its staff and its CEO was later charged with fraud. The district defended the process it used to debut that chatbot, which cost $3 million.

Parents and educators demanded transparency after the district shut down the chatbot.

Many questions remain

Outside Koreatown’s Wilton Place Elementary School and Wilton Place Early Education Center, parents interviewed by LAist Thursday morning either weren't aware of the investigation into Carvalho or said they didn't yet know how it would affect their children’s classroom experience.

The response was similar in the Facebook group Parents Supporting Teachers.

“We just want to know what this is all about,” said teacher Jennifer Turner. “There have been lots of discussions about possibilities, though.”

The moderators of the 30,000-plus member parent education and advocacy group issued a statement Wednesday calling on the Board of Education to immediately appoint an interim superintendent.

“We strongly believe the district’s first obligation is to protect students and families from any additional harm or disruption that may result from an investigation of this magnitude,” the statement read. “LAUSD’s advocacy for students’ rights must continue without distraction, instability, or erosion of public trust.”

The federal investigation comes at a time when LAUSD is financially strained, cutting hundreds of jobs, and facing pressure from the district’s largest labor unions to settle new contracts.

“We call on the LAUSD Board of Education to provide immediate, transparent, and honest communication to LAUSD employees and the public,” the district’s labor union for staff, SEIU Local 99, said in a social media statement Wednesday.

Carvalho has been superintendent of LAUSD since 2022, and the board unanimously renewed his contract in 2025. Prior to coming to L.A., Carvalho had worked for the Miami-Dade County school district for decades, 30 years as a teacher and the last 14 years as the district's supervisor.

Carvalho's time at LAUSD has included a number of wins for the district, including gains in test scores and participation in AP classes.

Producer Kevin Tidmarsh and senior editor Ross Brenneman contributed to this story.